Date:Wed, 5 Jan 2000 21:46:24 -0400
From: Daniel PIMIENTA <[email protected]>

http://www.hiid.harvard.edu/groups/macro/da21/papers/can_tele.html

Telecommunications, Information Technology and Economic Development A report on a Research Project Commissioned by the US AID David Canning, Harvard Institute for International Development, September 1999

From the abstract:
The main conclusions are that information technology is likely to be most effective in developed countries in raising productivity in the service sector and increasing the rate of innovation. For most developing countries the main attraction of information technology is to increase international communications and the openness of the economy. An empirical study on the role of telephone systems in economic growth suggests that communications can have a large impact. This provides evidence in for the idea that good communications allow greater success in export markets and quicker diffusion of technology.

Given the importance of embracing new information technologies, we are faced with the question of how countries can best achieve this. An empirical cross-country study of the determinants of Internet use highlights the importance of the availability, quality and cost of telephones as a major factor. In turn there is widespread evidence that competition in telephone provision has significant benefits in all these dimensions as compared with public provision. In addition, a competitive environment in telecommunications and in Internet provision is more likely to encourage the adoption of new technologies as they develop.

Daniel PIMIENTA

http://funredes.org/mistica/english/emec/production/c4/0090.html
Last modified: 06/01/2000